Ryan: Wrong to assume Paris attacks a ‘one-time event’

by Scott Wong - 11/19/15 3:47 PM ET

Faced with his first national security test as House Speaker, Paul Ryan on Thursday said the American public shouldn’t assume the attacks in Paris were a “one-time event.”

“People are very worried about the future, the immediate future. And I think it would be wrong to assume that Paris is a one-time event,” the Wisconsin Republican said during a meeting with a handful of Capitol Hill reporters in his Speaker’s office overlooking the National Mall.

{mosads}“Common sense and prudence dictate that we be on higher alert,” he added. “We cannot assume that Paris was a one-and-done event. I think most members are taking their jobs very seriously and trying to act as responsibly as possible.”

Ryan’s remarks came moments before the House overwhelmingly voted to pass legislation requiring tougher screenings for refugees from Syria and Iraq seeking to enter the U.S. Despite a veto threat from President Obama, nearly 50 Democrats joined Republicans in backing the bill.

Just weeks into the job, the new Speaker said he spoke with Obama shortly after gunmen and suicide bombers killed more than 120 people in a series of violent attacks in the heart of Paris.

Ryan told Obama that Republicans had numerous policy concerns about the U.S. refugee program and that he hoped the two could pursue legislation on a bipartisan basis. But Ryan declined to characterize the president’s response, saying it was a private conversation.

“This should not be Congress against the president, Republicans against the Democrats,” Ryan said. “This should be: What do we need to do to keep our people safe? … We don’t want to make this a partisan football.”

As Speaker, a position that puts him second in line to the presidency, Ryan now regularly receives classified national security briefings. After Paris, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has threatened similar attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., two cities that were hit in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Asked by The Hill whether he believes an attack on the homeland is just a matter of time, Ryan demurred. “I don’t think it’s responsible to fan hysteria and to fan flames of fear unless our authorities think that there is something specific that needs to be discussed,” he said.

But Ryan added that constituents he spoke to during a telephone town hall meeting this week in Democratic-leaning Kenosha County were “very nervous” about the ongoing terror threats.

And Ryan said he is aware Capitol Police have stepped up security at the Capitol complex following Friday’s attacks. His staff has been in touch with House Sergeant at Arms Paul D. Irving since Saturday.

“We have world-class security here at the Capitol, and they take their jobs very seriously,” Ryan said. “I think they have taken the appropriate measures.”

Tags Paris attacks Paul Ryan